Council meet online as Covid rises
South Lanarkshire Council have moved to fully online meetings in response to rising coronavirus cases in the region.
After the summer recess, the council had been holding hybrid meetings, with some councillors and officers present in the meeting room and others joining remotely.
However, following a significant increase in Covid cases throughout October, the council has decided to move meetings fully online.
Tuesday’s (October 27) education committee meeting was the first to be held online following the autumn recess.
The council have said that arrangements for council meetings will remain under review.
Members of the public have been unable to attend council meetings since March as a result of coronavirus restrictions.
However, members of the press are able to attend the virtual meetings.
Paul Manning, executive director of finance and corporate resources, said: “Throughout the pandemic the council has worked with elected members to ensure that arrangements have remained in place for effective decision-making and the delivery of services.
“This included a period during which we were able to hold blended committee meetings, which members could choose to attend either virtually or in person, while safely physically distanced.
“These arrangements have been kept under constant review in consultation with leaders of all the political groups and, in light of the ongoing issues with Covid-19, it has been agreed that it would be best to move to entirely virtual meetings at present to protect the safety of elected members and staff.
“Our experience of blended meetings has demonstrated that virtual access to meetings allows for full participation and scrutiny as key elements of the democratic process.
“While at this time it is not possible to open these virtual meetings to the wider public, we continue to explore possible arrangements to allow this happen.
“In the meantime, we are pleased to be able to accommodate the media as observers, to facilitate wider accountability and understanding of committee activities and decisions.”